"IAS students develop their collaboration and shared leadership abilities by learning to work with others to identify dimensions of a project, generate and refine ideas, follow through on the consequences of collective decisions, and pursue specific tasks without losing a sense of the whole. As part of this process, they learn to assess and draw on group members' diverse histories, strengths, and potential contributions. They develop skills in listening, mediating conflict, playing different roles, and reflecting on the outcomes of collaborative work. Students learn different ways of managing groups, communicating effectively and respectfully across differences, and reflecting critically and creatively on collaboration processes."
- University of Washington, School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences For this learning objective I decided to choose two group projects I was a part of. In one, we had to create an age appropriate lesson plan exhibiting a social justice issue, while in the other we were tasked with leading a field trip to a forest. Both projects are great examples of how I have learned about collaboration with others. In the first, I have to point out that I did almost all the work, which is not uncommon in college group projects. We got full points on the work and I’m still very proud of the project, but as far as learning how to collaborate with others this work shows me where I started when I came back to school. I wasn’t willing to trust my group to hold up their ends of the project. The second group project I choose for this objective came a year later, and I feel that it shows a lot of growth in my ability to work with others. In this project we were each assigned a specific role that, when all combined, would create a completed field trip project. During this project it was much easier for me to trust that my teammates were doing their share of the work, and everyone was committed and enthusiastic about doing a good job. We got along very well, and it made me feel very good when my groupmates would come to me for advice about their portion of the project. Together we were able to make a cohesive, successful, and fun project that got full credit. Over the course of my time at UWB I have learned to open myself up to others’ thoughts and ideas. Sure, I can do a lot of big projects on my own and do them well, but I have learned that having the perspectives and opinions of others can make the work better that it would be otherwise and also takes the burden of so much work from my shoulders. |